Looks, Do They Matter?

Our Looks, Do They Matter?

This is a volatile topic in today’s environment of selfies, selfie videos, entire social media accounts built around photos of a single person. Self absorption and obsession sometimes seem to be at all time highs. Facial plastic surgery, in fact all cosmetic surgeries, are at all time highs as well. Do our looks matter? Of course they do, but to whom, and how much?

There is an age old truism “it’s what’s on the inside that counts”. And this is an elemental truth. If you are one of the few whose career is based solely on your appearance, then what’s on the inside takes on a far lesser importance. But, if you are like the rest of us, who we are on the inside, our interpersonal abilities, knowledge, experience, skills, and confidence play a far greater role in our lives than our looks. But, before you get too comfortable with that idea, read on about the impact our looks have on our relationships, self confidence and careers.

Relationships

What about the role our looks play in attracting a mate? We can often see from single friends, they have a “type”. There is a look, facial type, hair color, that attract them. What is the role this plays in staying together in a relationship? There is an interesting article that reflects statistical results from a survey conducted with couples regarding their value and priority of their mate’s appearance.

Read the full article “Is Love Really Blind” by Vivian Diller PhD that appears in The Huffington Post. It states that men are more concerned than women about their partner’s aging facial appearance, especially during the first seven years of a relationship — but their concerns diminish over time. Dr. Diller also reports “No doubt, couples need to work on their emotional connection, but paying attention to one’s physical appearance may ensure that a relationship not only gets off to a good start, but remains there……But it’s time we accept what many of us instinctively know, yet hate to admit; caring for and about, our looks matters, too.”

So, the bottom line, yes our looks do matter in our relationships. We do not have to super model or super stud hot, but we need to take care of ourselves, our facial appearance, and our bodies as one factor in keeping our relationships vibrant.

Self Confidence

In this same study, conducted by Harris Interactive, a high number of couples (92%) agreed that their relationship was healthier when both partners felt confident about their appearance. Over half (52%) of men and women indicate that they would like their partner to pay more attention to their physical appearance. Faces are the physical feature people most often focus on, especially the eyes. Eyes are used to engage when a couple first meets. Lips that smile back at us convey the desire to move a relationship forward.

A key statement here, is that relationships are healthier when both partners feel confident about their appearance. This carries over into all areas of our lives. A lack of self confidence, grounded in our appearance, affects every area of our lives: how we interact with others both personally and professionally.

Patients electing facial plastic surgery are most often doing so, because they wish to feel more confident in themselves. Most do not desire to radically alter their looks, unlike what we see on online and in magazines depicting facial plastic surgery gone too far. Instead, a patient generally wants to recapture a more youthful appearance or improve their looks to better complement their face.

How Our Looks Affect Our Careers

Yes, our looks do affect our career opportunities, how we advance in our careers, and how much we are paid. Sad, but true. Another interesting study reported in Forbes magazine 2013 “You Are Judged by Your Appearance” relates these somewhat astonishing findings.

Tall people earn more money than their shorter co-workers. They earn $789 + more annually for every inch of height above average for a tall worker.

Overweight workers earn less. Workers that have a BMI of greater than 30 are paid less (by a rate of $8,666/year for women and $4,772 for obese men) than their more svelte co-workers.

Blondes earn more, by 7% , than other non-blonde female employees.

Employees that are in good shape, such as those who exercise three or more times a week, earn about $80 more per week more than their less fitness minded co-workers.

Women who wear makeup not only earn more than their make-free counterparts, but they are deemed higher in competence and trustworthiness.

Handsome people earn more. Beautiful workers earn approximately 5% more than unattractive employees.

Take heart, if you rate yourself as a plain Jane. Female co-workers deemed ‘too pretty’ will earn less. Exceptionally attractive men still benefit from their good looks and will earn more than their less attractive male counterparts.

These findings are not fair, but they do reflect the answer to the question: do my looks affect my career? Yes!

Our Looks Do Matter

Our looks do affect almost every part of our lives. It is not politically correct. And, it is not fair.

Choosing facial plastic surgery to improve your appearance today is easier and more affordable than ever before. There are many choices for specific results, reduced scarring, multiple non-surgical options, and improved recovery periods.

The message here, take care of your appearance, your general health, and your fitness. You will not only look and feel better, you will enjoy greater confidence and most likely benefit from healthier relationships, and maybe even get a pay raise or that job you wanted.